Former Alabama defensive back Eddie Williams (15) works on DB drills during the Crimson Tide's football practice, Tuesday, November 20, 2012, at the Thomas-Drew Practice Facility in Tuscaloosa, Ala. (Vasha Hunt/vhunt@al.com)

TUSCALOOSA, Alabama -- The lawyer of former Alabama football player Eddie Williams said Thursday that he's waiting to review Williams' alleged confession to attacking and robbing two UA students and other evidence before he decides whether to go forward with a preliminary hearing.

Williams' hearing, along ones for former teammates D.J. Pettway and Brent Calloway, is scheduled for March 19. If the defense waives its right to a preliminary hearing, the case proceeds to trial.

"I haven't seen and I'm looking forward to receiving the statement that
was taken by Eddie Williams," said Josh Swords, Williams' attorney and a former Alabama football player who spoke Thursday on Smashmouth Radio on ESPN973 The Zone.

"I know a lot of people have talked about
it. I'm being more meticulous on this case just because of so much
involvement from the outside world."

Swords said he expected to hear the confession and receive other evidence soon.

It was announced Wednesday that Williams, Pettway, Calloway and former Alabama linebacker Tyler Hayes were kicked off the football team and are no longer enrolled at the university.

According to arrest warrants, Williams, 20, confessed to two counts of second-degree robbery and one count of credit card fraud after he allegedly attacked and robbed two students in two separate incidents. In one of the incidents, Williams acted along with Pettway and Hayes. In the other, he acted alone while Pettway and Hayes waited in a nearby car.

Hayes also confessed to committing the crimes while Pettway did not.

Both Williams and Calloway confessed to using one of the student's UA action cards to purchase snacks from a Bryant Hall vending machine.

"When they hand me or turn the discovery over to me for my request,
that's the stuff I'm going to go on as far as if there's video tape
involved," Swords said. "I'm not saying I don't believe there's a statement. I just
don't know how the statement was taken. Was it authorized? Was the
Miranda (rights) read? There's a lot of things I have to look at."

Williams, a former Alabama safety and five-star recruit, was also arrested one day earlier for carrying a pistol without a license.

Swords said confessions can be a "double-edged sword."

"Some people would say that giving a statement like that with a charge
such as this, you sank your ship," Swords said. "Some people would say you're being
honest about it and not giving law enforcement deterrence or making them
jump from hurdles or trying to be deceitful."

Williams, Pettway and Calloway have each requested to be tried as youthful offenders. Under
state law, defendants under the age of 21 can apply for youthful
offender status, a distinction that caps the maximum sentence and shields records from
public view.

Williams requested and received permission to return to his home in Panama City, Fla., while he waits for the legal process to unfold.

Swords said Williams is doing community service work, regularly attending church and exploring whether to enroll in a junior college.

"Anything we can do to put
him forward, taking positive steps after this incident is the focus down
there in Panama City," Swords said.

Among the other highlights from Swords' interview...

***Swords clarified that Williams was, in fact, expelled from the university after going through the school's judicial review process. Per its privacy policy, UA does not disclose findings and decisions levied in its student judicial hearings.

"They were very fair, very up front and very forthcoming with their
investigation on what they believed to be the violations of the
University of Alabama student code," Swords said.

***Swords said he could not comment on whether Williams was under the influence of drugs or alcohol during the alleged incidents.

"Those are factors that if they did exist would definitely be taken in by
the court," Swords said. "Based on my role in this thing, I can't really comment to
that right now."

"He followed procedures," Swords said. "I think he was pretty smart in letting the university take its toll.

"You can't play football at the University of Alabama if you're not a
student. Him following that practice, I don't think it was anything to
show hesitation. He had made that decision but I think even though he is
a football coach for the University of Alabama and when there's an
issue like this involving students, especially a student on a student,
that decision needs to lie with the university."